The present invention relates generally to seats that allow a user to rest in a sitting position and more specifically to seats designed to regulate the temperature of a user. The concept of temperature regulated seating is well known and especially prevalent in passenger vehicles such as automobiles, boats, airplanes, and the like.
Some have attempted to regulate the temperature of a seated person by blowing temperature regulated air on the person. A common arrangement to accomplish this is to supply air through conduits in a seat to a surface of the seat in contact with a user. The surface in contact with the user often comprises discrete air outlets or an air-permeable fabric to allow the air to impact the user.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,761,399 to Bargheer et al., which is incorporated herein for all that it discloses, describes a motor vehicle seat with an air supply device integrated in its backrest and/or head restraint including an air outlet duct having an outlet opening arranged on the front side of the head restraint, for supplying the head, neck and shoulder region of an occupant with hot air, and an air inlet duct having an inlet opening arranged on the rear side of the backrest, with a heating element being assigned to the air supply device.
In another example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,976,734 to Stoewe, which is incorporated herein for all that it discloses, describes a vehicle seat with a backrest cover at least partially air permeable wherein air exchange passes through the air-permeable regions. This may take the form of a woven or knitted textile which covers a ventilating fan arranged in the backrest.
Despite the benefits of such systems, it would be desirable to have an increased amount of heat exchange between a temperature regulated seat and a user.